SHARE ON: |
| |
| |
 |
 |
|
|
A Texas nurse was convicted Tuesday of capital murder in the deaths of four patients who died after prosecutors say he injected them with air following heart surgeries.
The Smith County jury deliberated for about an hour before finding William George Davis, of Hallsville, guilty of capital murder involving multiple victims. Prosecutors planned to seek the death penalty during the sentencing phase, which was scheduled to start Wednesday.
Davis, 37, was accused of injecting air into the four patients arteries after they underwent heart surgery at the Christus Trinity Mother Frances Hospital in Tyler in 2017 and 2018. During recovery from their surgeries, the four -- John Lafferty, Ronald Clark, Christopher Greenway and Joseph Kalina -- suffered unexplained neurological problems and died.
During the trial, Dr. William Yarbrough, a Dallas-area pulmonologist and professor of internal medicine, explained to the jury how injecting air into the arterial system of the brain causes brain injury and death.
Yarbrough said he was able to determine there was air in the arterial system of the victims brains by viewing images from brain scans -- something he said he had never before observed in his decades in medicine.
He ruled out blood pressure problems or any other causes of death besides the injection of air, and said it must have happened after the surgeries because the complications occurred while the patients were in recovery.
Defense attorney Phillip Hayes told the jury that the hospital had issues and that Davis was a scapegoat who was only charged because he was there when the deaths occurred.
Prosecutor Chris Gatewood said during closing arguments that Davis liked to kill people. And prosecutor Jacob Putman said the hospital hadnt changed any of its procedures and hadnt had any similar incidents since Davis left.
|
 |
|
 |
|
 |
|
 |
3 pm |
| 18 ℃ |
| LIGHT RAIN |
WIND: NE 17 KM/H
GUSTING TO 19 KM/H |
|
|
 |
4 pm |
| 18 ℃ |
| OVERCAST CLOUDS |
WIND: NNE 15 KM/H
GUSTING TO 19 KM/H |
|
|
|
5 pm |
| 19 ℃ |
| OVERCAST CLOUDS |
WIND: N 13 KM/H
GUSTING TO 19 KM/H |
|
|
|
6 pm |
| 18 ℃ |
| OVERCAST CLOUDS |
WIND: N 14 KM/H
GUSTING TO 15 KM/H |
|
|
|
7 pm |
| 16 ℃ |
| LIGHT RAIN |
WIND: NNE 16 KM/H
GUSTING TO 16 KM/H |
|
|
|
8 pm |
| 17 ℃ |
| LIGHT RAIN |
WIND: N 13 KM/H
GUSTING TO 20 KM/H |
|
|
 |
9 pm |
| 14 ℃ |
| SCATTERED CLOUDS |
WIND: N 11 KM/H
GUSTING TO 15 KM/H |
|
|
 |
10 pm |
| 13 ℃ |
| SCATTERED CLOUDS |
WIND: N 11 KM/H
GUSTING TO 16 KM/H |
|
|
|
|
TODAY |
HIGH OF 19 ℃
LOW OF 10 ℃ |
| LIGHT RAIN |
|
|
|
WEDNESDAY |
HIGH OF 21 ℃
LOW OF 10 ℃ |
| BROKEN CLOUDS |
|
|
|
THURSDAY |
HIGH OF 22 ℃
LOW OF 10 ℃ |
| SCATTERED CLOUDS |
|
|
|
FRIDAY |
HIGH OF 22 ℃
LOW OF 13 ℃ |
| LIGHT RAIN |
|
|
|
SATURDAY |
HIGH OF 17 ℃
LOW OF 13 ℃ |
| MODERATE RAIN |
|
|
|
SUNDAY |
HIGH OF 18 ℃
LOW OF 13 ℃ |
| LIGHT RAIN |
|
|
|
MONDAY |
HIGH OF 20 ℃
LOW OF 12 ℃ |
| LIGHT RAIN |
|
|
 |
TUESDAY |
HIGH OF 26 ℃
LOW OF 13 ℃ |
| CLEAR SKY |
|
|
|
|
|
|
 |
 |
BRAD PAISLEY
BEAT THIS SUMMER
03:56 PM |
|
 |
JOSH TURNER
SOMEWHERE WITH HER
03:53 PM |
|
 |
JAKE BANFIELD
OKLAHOMA SOONER
03:50 PM |
|
 |
BLAKE SHELTON
LET HIM IN ANYWAY
03:47 PM |
|
 |
CHRIS JANSON
WHAT YOURE MISSING
03:42 PM |
|
 |
BRANTLEY GILBERT
ME AND MY HOUSE
03:38 PM |
|
 |
DYLAN MARLOWE
COMING HOME TOMORROW
03:35 PM |
|
 |
THOMAS RHETT
OLD TRICKS
03:32 PM |
|
 |
SAM GROW
RANDOM ACTS OF LONELINESS
03:29 PM |
|
 |
ZAC BROWN BAND
I LOST IT
03:26 PM |
|
 
 |
